Moonlight shadows
by luvtoshi
Summary: Sometimes, the moon brings out hidden feelings to the surface. An autumn theme one-shot.


**An autumn theme one-shot. **

**Almost AU...and lots of cheesiness.  
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**XXXXX**

"There's no other place more beautiful than Konoha!"

Blond hair ruffled to the usual spiky mess by the wind, Naruto's grin was bright as they walked away from the training grounds.

Sakura swivelled her head to look sideways at him. "I bet all the kages say this about their village!" she teased with a roll of emerald eyes.

"Yes, but they're wrong! Konoha _is_ the loveliest of all!" Naruto said, looking at her with sparkling blue eyes.

Sakura must admit that she shared his sentiments as they walked through the autumnal splendor of the green area of the training grounds. The usual lush green canopy of the huge trees had ceded their place to the spectacular blast of colours of autumn; a dazzling mixture of purples, golden, red and burnt orange, and the autumn cooling breeze causing a shower of loose, colourful leaves fluttering and rustling everywhere, twisting and turning through the air before silently tumbling down to the ground, creating a carpet rich of vibrant, gleaming colours. It was simply breathtaking and a sight not to be seen anywhere else.

"But, Naruto, in your departing speech at the Wheat village, you said that Wheat village is the loveliest village you've been at!" Sai reminded him.

Oh yes, Naruto had liked Wheat village all right, thought Sakura. Much to his utmost delight, he had discovered a ramen stand in Wheat which he had catalogued as the second best ramen he had ever eaten; the first one being Ichiraku's of course. And then, there had been the daughter of village leader, a very pretty brown haired girl named Kaori, who had fussed and fawned and batted her eyelashes at Naruto; _flirting_ with him.

Unconsciously, a small frown marred Sakura's face at the memory. Naruto had been his usual warm and friendly self, basking in the attention, but being _Naruto_, though, had been oblivious to the girl's lead on.

Sakura wondered what would have happened if Naruto _had_ noticed the girl's interest and reciprocated it. Kaori wasn't the first girl who had been showering such type of interest in the blond lately. Whether in Konoha or elsewhere, Naruto attracted lots of female attention now– of all age, too! Which wasn't surprising, Sakura had to admit, as she looked at her friend. At twenty three years old, the Rokudaime of Konoha was certainly a fine species of the male population. And he wouldn't be oblivious to all of them forever, Sakura could not help thinking, there would come the time when he _would_ notice and return someone's interest.

An odd feeling snaked down Sakura's spine and she shook herself. Much to her bewildered chagrin, this had been a very common occurring lastly; strange, odd feelings suddenly popping out from nowhere and without warning to bite her.

"That was diplomatic talk!" Naruto's voice dragged her out of her musings and she saw that the two males were bickering. At least, Naruto was looking at Sai with a slight annoyance, while Sai was looking back with inquisitive curiosity.

"Kaori-san was pretty, though, wasn't she?" Sai remarked.

Naruto shot him a suspicious look. "You liked her?"

Sai flashed him one of his unique smile – smile which said "the situation calls for a smile". "Oh no, I didn't like her. She liked _you_. A lot."

Naruto's eyes widened. "She didn't," he immediately protested, stealing a quick, nervous look at Sakura. But she was nodding her head.

"She did, you baka," she confirmed.

Spluttering incomprehensively, Naruto's ears burned red.

"You should hone your observation skills, Naruto," Sai said solemnly.

They reached the main street, which was already busy even at this hour, where shinobis as well as civilians stopped to greet the Hokage before hurrying about their day, and some genins busy with the usual morning autumnal tasks, raking, sweeping and gathering the fallen leaves off the streets into the huge piles before spading them away in bags.

"Ichiraku?" Naruto asked the others. It was still early; he had time for one – or a couple – of bowls of ramen before going to the Hokage tower.

Sakura immediately shook her head. "Not for me. I have lots to do." She had a very busy schedule at the hospital; she'll just grab something light from her fridge. "I'll see you guys in the evening at Chouji's for the Tsukimi party," she reminded them.

The Akimichi clan always celebrated the autumn season with big pomp, in tribute to the meaning of their name - _the road in the season of autumn_,and for that year, as clan leader for the first Autumn, Chouji had invited all his friends over for the Tsukimi, the harvest moon viewing festival.

"Yeah, the party," Naruto nodded. It would be great to meet the gang.

"See you later then!" Giving them a wave, Sakura departed.

"See you, Sakura-chan!" Naruto waved back. Blue eyes followed her until she disappeared around the bend.

"Why don't you tell her how you feel," Sai said quietly, breaking Naruto out of his contemplative gaze of the departing back of their pink haired team mate.

Startled, Naruto jerked his head to look at his friend. This conversation brought a sense of déjà vu. He recalled the time when Sai had asked him the same question years ago.

"It's so clear that you still like her a lot, and you don't have the excuse of not having fulfilled your promise to her this time," Sai said, pointedly looking at the third person who had been quiet all the time they had walked from the training grounds – as usual.

Said person raised his eyebrows as the two pairs of eyes zoomed on him. "Naruto promised Sakura that he would bring you back home," Sai offered as explanation.

Uchiha Sasuke scowled. What was he, some candy? To be promised to a little girl? And he had not been _brought_ to Konoha – he had come willingly – though with some major encouragements from Naruto - after he and Naruto had combined their forces to bring Madara down. Albeit, all his powers had been stripped off and he had been house arrested for four years– it was only one year now since it had been lifted for village-arrest and always under close ANBU surveyance; but it was a worthwhile price to pay for the inner peace he had finally found.

"And in any case, she had released you from that promise long before," Sai continued, looking at Naruto, as the blond seemed lost for words. "And she has since long gotten over Emo here – since as far as the war."

Sasuke grunted agreeably at this – not to the Emo part - but to the over-since-the-war part.

"I _know_," said Naruto, giving an awkward smile. Sai was not telling him anything new.

"Then, have you given up on her?"

This elicited an immediate response from the blond. "_Give up_ on Sakura-chan? Never!"

Both Sai and Sasuke hid a smirk. It was the reaction they had been expecting and Naruto did not disappoint. Uzumaki Naruto and Give up were two concepts that never went in one sentence. Just as he had never given up on Sasuke, despite all odds and everybody, it would be surprising that he would give up on Sakura.

"Then why…?" Sai wanted to understand what was holding his friend back. Even Sasuke looked interestedly at him.

Naruto gave a helpless shrug and raked his fingers in his hair. "It's just…complicated."

The more he grew up, the more he found this love and feelings thing to be complicated. Even more complicated than politics and wars, he could not help thinking. It had been extremely difficult and awkward when he had to tell Hinata that he did not share her feelings, that his heart had always been taken; it would have been a lie if he got with her, and Naruto could not live in a lie.

And he did not know how to approach Sakura with something in this direction. He was not a kid anymore, and the days where he could just obnoxiously yell his feelings for her on the roofs for all to hear were long gone. They were so important to each other; she was so important to him that he was terrified of spoiling things between them, so, he preferred to wait and go with the flow, seeing where it would lead them eventually.

As if reading his thoughts, Sasuke spoke for the first time, "Just don't wait too long."

Sai nodded in agreement with the Uchiha. They could see that Naruto and Sakura had something special, very special, but it was up to them to face and acted on what they had. They just hoped that the two would man up soon and do something about it.

Naruto sighed, and then narrowed his eyes at the two. "Since when are you guys so experts on girls?"

And the three proceeded to Ichiraku, Naruto arguing with them.

**XXXXX**

It was early evening and the sun had not set yet. The thirty or so traditionally dressed guests, which included the gang, the former Hokage, Tsunade and some other close family friends, milled about in the wide terrace and garden of the head of the Akimichi clan's residence; terrace that overlooked vast potato fields, whose parallel rows of white blooms indicated that it was time for harvest, and which stretched out as far as the eyes could see, until the horizon. Slightly on the west was the Nara district which was adjoined to the Akimichi, and the Nara woods which lay beyond the vast fields glowed like a flame in the soft light of the approaching sundown, creating an ethereal, magical quality to the scenery.

But it was to the east that the guests were more interested in; the moon should be up soon now. The air was filled with the magic of anticipation, waiting for the astral body to rise in its special glory of that particular day.

The décor was typical of the Tsukimi festival: tall vases prettily filled with pampas grass placed decoratively on the terrace and garden, and offerings which were to be given to the moon in order to pray for an abundant harvest arranged on a table facing the east. On the sides, a couple of tables were laden with the traditional Tsukimi food - Tsukimi dango, Tsukimi udon along with many other dishes - for the guests to enjoy.

Chouji, the 16th head of Akimichi clan, was decked in his full traditional clan regalia and along with the help of his parents, was busy being the perfect host to his guests.

And Naruto was still nowhere to be seen.

"Where's that baka," Sakura muttered under her breath. The party had started at 6:00, the program being that the guests have some drinks while waiting for the moon to rise at 6:30, then open-buffet dinner after that. It was now almost time for the moon to rise and the Rokudaime had still not made his appearance.

Sakura realised that she had been loud enough to be heard when a smirking Ino drawled, "Yeah, where is he, after all the efforts you've made for him?"

Ino was alluding to Sakura's appearance. For the occasion, Sakura had worn a furisode - a richly ornate silk kimono in vibrant hues of blue, green and gold, with floor length sleeves and a green and gold obi. Not her usual type of thing to wear, but it had been a gift from her mother for her 20th birthday and it had been left in the closet for three years without ever being worn. The occasion had deemed right enough for it to be used. And to keep up with the look, she had gathered her mid-back length hair up, and two decorative senbons held the updo in place.

Pink eyebrows twitched. "I dressed such to please myself!" Sakura protested. It was true. Partly.

Between her hectic hours as Head medic and the medic security of the Hokage's team, she barely had time or occasions to dress up, and for once she had wanted to be decked differently than her hospital scrubs and training sweats and mission garbs. She wanted to feel feminine and attractive.

"Sure, sure. We all say that," Ino said sardonically. "That's why you've been glancing at the door every minute since you've been here! And if I look around, _he_ is the only one missing."

Sakura was taken aback. She quickly went through her actions, dismayed. Had she been that eager for his arrival, and worst still, that obvious about it? "You always read too much from simple things, Pig," she said dismissively, cautiously hiding her flustered state.

"Do I?"

Green eyes glared at the blond, and to her horror, Sakura felt her cheeks getting warm under the piercing gaze of her friend.

"Ah-ha!" Ino immediately pounced, her eyes gleaming in sadistic triumph.

"It's starting!" came an excited cry at that exact moment and Ino could not say anything further as the small crowd made an excited move to the eastern end.

Sakura heaved a relieved sigh.

"We'll talk about this later," Ino mouthed and Sakura scowled at her.

Nothing much could be missed by the sharp Yamanaka girl. But right now, Sakura had no wish to talk about _it_; it being the complicated confusion that she was facing since some time now.

Things had been changing…slowly and insidiously but inexorably, until one morning she had woken up to realise how much she was totally enmeshed with her best friend – Naruto. To the point where it was getting ridiculous how much her mind was being crowded by thoughts about him. It was the first thing Sakura was aware of when she woke up, and the last thing before she went to sleep, and in between, when she was not in a meeting or for some other work at the Hokage tower, or training together, or having ramen together, or just simply hanging out together, or if she did not drown herself totally in her hospital duties, it throbbed insistently and made it impossible to think of anything else. Thoughts consisting of _anything_ about him and not always platonic and it was more than disturbing, seeing that this was _Naruto_, her friend Naruto, for Kami's sake!

When it happened, how it happened, why it happened, Sakura had given up debating and analysing and calculating. She had too many sleepless nights over it and she still had difficulty in pinpointing when - it could be since always and it could be since recently; how - it could be as a natural and inevitable conclusion and it could be a crazy turnabout of life; why – it could be for all the reasons and it could be for no reasons at all.

And she was certainly not going to confide any of these to Ino. Or to anybody else. Least the concerned person himself. She shuddered at the thought. Her last move in that direction had been such a pitiful failure, and she was so not keen to attempt anything like that again.

And Naruto had become so very adept at hiding his thoughts when he wanted. She could read him in many things, but she had absolutely no clue whether he still harbour any of those types of feelings he had for her in their earlier days. And if there was something Sakura had learnt, it was to not take things for granted.

So, nope; her disturbing problem would remain for her _only_. She needed to sort out this jumbled confusion by herself.

She joined the others as they all stood facing the eastern horizon, watching breathlessly as the first yellowish-silvery moon-rays appeared. Dusk had fallen by that time, and the rays were bright against the darkening blue mixed with purple of the sky. A rush of awed murmurs ran along the group, watching as slowly, more of the celestial orb was revealed. It was a spectacular view.

"To the moon!" cheered Chouji, raising his glass, and everybody followed suit and cheered with him.

"Jiraiya said that in a far away land in the west, women celebrate this moon as a tribute for the man they love," Tsunade told the interested group. Some sighs were raised among the women.

"And the men said praises and recited poems for their loved ones, comparing their beauties to that of the moon."

This caused some snickers from the men. Excluding Lee – whose eyes gleamed with interest - they were not into poetry, and the idea having to recite poems was ludicrous! Though some cheeks had a pink tint as covert looks were sneaked towards the girls.

Ino gave a dejected sigh. "It'll be a long wait if we ever hope to have such poetries recited for us," she said in low voice. The only poetry she could ever hope to hear would be about those damn clouds in the sky!

"You're so right," agreed Ten-Ten gloomily, glancing at her Hyuuga team-mate.

Sakura could not help agreeing with Ino for this one. Whether she was as flat as a board or curvier, or wore a sack or a dress fit for royalties, Naruto would still see her as the good old unchanged Sakura-chan. Jolted at the direction her thoughts were going, she braked her thoughts immediately. Why the hell was she thinking about _Naruto_ in this case? She berated herself.

"Hey, Ugly, where's Naruto?"

Talk about praises and beauty poems! Sakura turned around to shoot a glare at Sai. "How the hell would I know?" she snapped, pink eyebrow twitching crossly. Sai still called her Ugly sometimes, out of the blue. She had gotten used to it, but often she felt like throttling him, especially in times like this.

"Don't be down. He _will_ come; he's the Hokage, after all, he can hardly ignore such invitations," Sai said, giving her one of his trademark smile.

"Who said I'm down?" she said belligerently, getting even crosser. First Ino, now Sai!

Giving her another smile, Sai hurriedly eclipsed, not wanting to be at the receiving end of her ire. Muttering under her breath, Sakura resumed her moon viewing.

To the major disappointment of everyone, the show was very short lasting. A mountain of low slung, thick clouds moved to hide the moon. Judging from the endless trail that the block of clouds had, it was going to be a long wait for the moon to appear again. The most frustrating was that it was only the eastern horizon which was covered – the remaining sky was clear.

"That was certainly quick!" Kiba remarked.

"Well, it was fabulous while it lasted," said Ten-Ten wistfully.

The party was fully under way when Sakura turned her head to look at the door, alerted by the commotion that heralded the arrival of the Rokudaime.

"You're late! Where were you all this time?" she immediately questioned, glaring at him as he reached her side after having greeted Chouji and his parents.

Blue eyes had widened at the sight of her.

Becoming aware of her obvious ire, and that she expected a reply, Naruto mentally shook himself. "Ah, Sakura-chan…I thought about taking a short afternoon nap, and ended up sleeping until now," he chuckled, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

"You were _sleeping_?"

He had trouble focusing on her words. "Umm, yeah," he said almost absentmindedly, knowing that he had to give a reply on some sort to hide his bemused state at the stunning sight of her, garbed as she was; least that she noticed him ogling at her. But she was too busy being cross with him to notice his admirative – though stealthy – look over.

As a small boy, Naruto had fallen in love with Sakura with all the innocence of a child, finding her cute. As years had progressed, he had admired her strength, her infallible dedication, her will, her kindness…

Now, young man, he could not help but be attuned to some finer details_

_like the depth of those beautiful, green eyes, in which he could drown eternally and which had turned into an even more sparkling, jeweled shade from the vibrant hues of her clothes, and which were now glowering so crossly at him. He felt his knees turning weak.

"At least you've taken the time to dress correctly," she muttered, eyeing his formal navy hakama and kimono.

"Were you _waiting_ for me?" Blue eyes lighted with keen speculation and she blinked.

Then she huffed. "You wish!"

_and that dainty, adoring nose of hers, raised in the air as somehow she managed to look down at him, despite him topping her by at least fifteen centimeters.

"So, you've eaten already?" he asked, disappointed.

"Count yourself lucky that you have considerate team mates. Sai is over there."

_and the subtle sway of her hips, which had grown more feminine now and which were emphasized by her obi, as in a flurry of silks, she whirled to walk away. Blue eyes watched her graceful gait, mesmerized.

"The food is this way; are you coming or what?" she urged, pausing to look at him over her shoulder while impatiently pushing a pink strand which had escaped from her updo away from her face.

_and the graceful arch of her creamy, oh so tantalising neck, put into prominence by the upsweep style of her hairdo and teased by the few wild escapee curls. Naruto felt his heartbeat spiking up.

"Yeah, I'm coming, Sakura-chan."

"There's so much choice," she said, impressed, a short while later as together with Sai, they stood in front of the table laden with food.

_and how she sometimes gnawed on her bottom lip when she was worried or absorbed in her thoughts, like she was doing now while she considered what to eat. This always crazed him to no end, as he always wished he was the one doing it for her.

He thought he would die a little **if** ever one day he would finally be able to kiss her.

"Naruto, here you are, at last!" Ino exclaimed, appearing by the table and snapping him from his admirative stupor. "You missed the show! The moon had disappeared behind the clouds and you won't be able to see it until very late now."

"What's the big fuss anyway; I can see the moon any day!" Naruto grumbled. Everyone had been chiding him for being late and missing the show. "It's the food that's the real attraction!"

Chouji grinned agreeably, while Kiba gave a snort of approval. The Inuzuka could not understand what the big fuss was about, as well.

Ino huffed in indignation. "Kyaa! Today is special. Today the moon is biggest and brightest of all the year round."

Naruto raised his eyebrows. "So?"

"You do not appreciate the value of beauty!" Ino accused, glowering at him by now.

"Bah. What's there in it?" he scoffed. "I just have to look at Sakura-chan; she's much more beautiful than any moon, however brightest!"

Sakura choked on the dango she had just popped in her mouth while Ino's mouth fell open. A stunned silence fell on the group of friends. Sakura stared at Naruto, opening her mouth then closing it, words failing her. Her cheeks had turned bright red.

Naruto gulped and gave a nervous laugh at her reaction. Even the stare he was receiving from all his friends was getting to him. "Umm…Hey…let's eat, all right?" he chuckled nervously, "It's what we have been invited here for…" He was very careful to avoid looking in the direction of Sakura.

"Have you been eavesdropping before coming here or what?" Kiba demanded, glaring at him in suspicion. Even Shikamaru and Neji were sending him disgruntled looks.

Naruto looked at Kiba, totally blank. "Huh?"

"What Tsunade-sama had been saying earlier? About the poems?"

Naruto still looked at him in total incomprehension. "Poems?"

The young men hang their heads, feeling dejected. The Uzumaki had come up with the line instinctively, on his own. He sure had a way of always topping them!

**XXXXX**

"It's really too bad you've missed the moon," Sakura said an hour later as she, Naruto and Sai walked through the busy streets of Konoha, people stopping from time to time to greet the Hokage. "It's silly that you've been to a moon viewing party without actually viewing the moon!"

The party was over and the two men had insisted to walk her home, despite her protests. It was still quite early, barely eight, and like them, many people, dressed in traditional clothing, were returning from Tsukimi parties.

"The clouds should clear by half an hour," said Sai, looking up at the sky. As if by a pure sense of mischief, the block of clouds still stubbornly hid the moon, while the everywhere else the sky was clear and brightly lit by the diffused moonlight coming from behind the clouds. "But you won't have a good view from here," said the artist. The moon was still quite low in the sky and the tall buildings would obstruct a clear view.

"Maybe you can go on the Hokage monument," Sakura suggested.

"The high grounds on the east hills overlooking the lake will give a much better view, though," said Sai.

"Why don't we all go?" Naruto immediately enthused. "The Tsukimi is not over, as far as I know!"

But Sai declined. "I have an ANBU meeting very early in the morning."

Naruto turned to Sakura. "Sakura-chan?" She looked indecisive and he immediately pressed on, "You yourself had been pointing out that I've missed the moon."

"That's your own fault!"

"Come-on, it's still early!"

She was taken short. It _was_ early, and her hospital duty started at 9 the next day – she would have ample time. Naruto saw her relenting.

"Isn't the hills too far…," she started doubtfully, looking at her traditional wooden sandals which were definitely not made for long walks, and the eastern hills were rather out of the way.

She barely finished her sentence and Naruto had already made some swift hand seals, grabbed her arm and pull her along in a flash step.

Sakura immediately elbowed him in the side when they finally landed and he grunted. "Why don't you give me a warning before doing that?" she gritted, working to steady her spinning head. She always felt dizzy and nauseous while being transported by his Flash-steps jutsu.

She took some deep gulps of air, and then feeling better, looked around, noticing that they were not on top of the hills.

"I thought we could enjoy the walk up," said Naruto at her raised eyebrow. "It's just short way. I hope you don't mind?"

She shook her head. A quiet walk seemed nice. "Let's go," she said.

Away from the rush of the crowd and far from artificial lights, the indirect, diffused moonlight seemed even brighter and more mystical, the hushed silence adding to the magic of the scenery.

Naruto took a deep, happy breath, enjoying the calm and sereneness. "It's so beautiful here!" he said, flashing her a boyish grin.

Sakura had to agree; it was indeed enchanting. The air was quite crisp and cold, but the double silk layers of her kimono were warming enough. A comfortable, easy closeness between them, they took the rock-paved pathway that led to the top of the hills, walking side by side. As their eyes became adapted to the dark, the landscape appeared in finer details, bathed in a soft mixture of grey and blue tint. It was if looking at a black and white picture; the silhouettes of sakura and oak trees stark and clear against the silvery background, the moonlight shadows creating beautiful patterns on the grounds, and lower below, on their right, the small lake shone under the lit sky, pale and smooth and silvery.

The rustle of fallen leaves under their feet seeming quite loud in the silence of the night, the cool autumn breeze whispering about them, and her silk kimono swooshing softly with each step she took

And the further and longer they walked, the more Sakura felt a nervousness gripping her. This setting was turning out to be too intimate, too cheesily… romantic, she realized, shivering. She was suddenly having difficulty to concentrate on her surrounding and was instead getting increasingly, acutely aware of the warm presence besides her.

"Are you cold?" Naruto asked, seeing her clasping her arms together.

"No, I'm fine." Appalled, she realized that her voice came out husky.

Fidgeting with her kimono in nervousness, her heart thumping hard against her chest, Sakura was deeply questioning the wisdom of having agreed to this moonlit walk in the hills with Naruto. By the time they reached the top of the hills, she was mass of uptight nerves, feeling all jittery and jumpy.

_This was ridiculous,_ Sakura scolded herself for the umpteenth time. This was _Naruto_. Naruto, her dunce of a friend. Naruto…_who had been the cause of much of her sleepless nights_, whispered an insidious voice in her head. She pushed that voice firmly away and took a deep breath to calm her nerves. It was just a walk, she sternly told herself.

A couple of street lights lit the flat, grassy grounds at the top; a few oak trees bordered the area, and underneath which, high pile of leaves, almost as high as the two, was stacked.

"Surely to be collected tomorrow morning," Naruto pointed to the high stacks.

Naruto could sense Sakura's tension – she had been so since they had started walking up the hill. He had been trying to cheer her up, but he could sense her unable to unwind. In fact, recently, she had been quite often strangely strained. He frowned. Too often, now that he recalled properly. Something was wrong, and Naruto didn't like it. If there was something he loathed, it was to see Sakura sad or worried about anything.

"You remember how as genins, we used to have fun with the leaves gathering missions?" he said, trying not to show that he was observing her reactions closely.

Her smile was easy and genuine, without any sad undertones that he had been fearing to see. "Yeah," she chuckled, "It was certainly fun for _you_."

Needless to say, Naruto had always been the one having more fun of the three, playing pranks on them, dumping loads of leaves when she and Sasuke were not looking and creating more mess than order.

Deciding he'd better approach her directly, Naruto asked, "Hey, Sakura-chan, is everything all right? Are _you_ all right?"

Sakura started at the question and paling, shot him a quick sideways glance.

"You've seemed ….pre-occupied a lot, lately," he said, frowning in concern.

Trust him to be so astute. "I'm fine," she lied. "Just have a lot to do these days at the hospital," she quickly improvised at his narrowed gaze.

"Sure?" he persisted, looking unconvinced. "You know you can tell me if anything's wrong."

She forced a light chuckle. "Yes, sure," she insisted. Sometimes, he knew her too well, she thought with an inward sigh, wishing he would stop asking if something was wrong. The last thing she wanted was for him to probe why she was so tense. "You know how hectic things are with the current training batch."

Naruto decided to drop the matter; at least for now, until she was ready to talk about whatever was troubling her. A sudden urge for mischief gripped him.

"What you need is some fun, Sakura-chan," he said with a devilish grin.

And before she could ask what he meant, he had grabbed her hand and dragged her right through one of the nearest huge pile of leaves. Her eyes flew wide in outrage and she could only gasp aloud, but it was too late; she was already submerged by a mass of dried leaves.

She gave an incensed yell, "Uzumaki Naruto!" She stood there, covered in leaves from head to toe, some having got in her collar and sticking into her flesh and itching her.

His teeth flashed white in the dim light as he grinned cheekily. "Autumn shower, Sakura-chan!" Then he yelped and ran as she started chasing him, his playful laugh echoing behind him.

"You!..." She yelled, seething. She had spent hours getting ready and having her hair done and now, judging from the shower of leaves still falling from her head, and she must resemble a scare-crow!

Feeling hampered by her kimono, she hitched the hem up a bit and ran after him as fast as the bulky garment would permit her. He did not have the same problem, his hakama giving him all the freedom to scamper off.

Seeing that her wooden sandal as well was slowing her, she paused with a growl to kick them off, then resumed her chase, pulsing chakra at the sole of her feet to propel her ahead.

Turning his head, Naruto saw her gaining on him and he knew he needed to act fast. He needed to distract her. He suddenly appeared behind her, and in a smooth, swift movement, pulled off the decorative senbons holding her hair in place, freeing the luxuriant mass of hair which cascaded down her back.

It worked and she stalled momentarily.

His eyes fluttered shut, and time seemed to slow during one short instance of pleasure as his senses were teased by some soft, silky, fruity scented pink strands brushing against his face when she whirled around.

Then, feeling the increasing wrath directed at him, he laughed and jumped a few feet back, out of her reach.

"If you think that I'll be distracted by my loose hair, you are wrong," she bellowed and charged at him again, silks and hair billowing around her frame.

At the back of her mind, she knew that this was not about being angry at having been showered with leaves anymore. It had turned out into a game, a…chase; an exciting, exhilarating chase, which she find herself almost compelled to play with him. She did not mind _chasing_ him. His laughs and her growls resonated in the silence of the hills as they ran about, him making sure he was always just out of her grasp, and her getting even more challenged to catch him.

Propelling another burst of chakra to her feet, she took a high leap in his direction. He blurred out of sight, to instantaneously reappear right in front of her in mid-air, face to face. Even as her eyes widened, strong, warm arms locked her in a tight embrace, braking her momentum, and they both plunged towards the ground.

"Naruto!" Sakura cried out, and squeezed her eyes shut, bracing herself for the impact.

But he had turned at the last minute and he took the brunt of the fall, a rustle of leaves and the grassy ground cushioning his thud, and she landed on his hard body in a heap of long pink hair, pale milky arms and legs and jumble of green and blue silks.

Winded, she laid still and full bodied on him, his arms still around her, her face buried against the warm, pulsing skin of the junction of his neck and shoulder.

For a long moment, neither moved or talked.

Both were breathing hard. Which was strange, since such a puny exercise should not have exerted such powerful shinobis as them, Naruto thought distractedly, lost in the sweet heavenly softness that was her weight on him, and her warm, moist breaths against his skin.

Neither seemed to be able to disengage, and they stayed like that much, much longer than necessary. He could feel her heart beating against him, fast.

And he realized, with a sudden astounding clarity, that it was beating _as madly as his_.

After a stunned moment, he released a shaky, dawning breath. He had been so _blind_!

Sakura felt a shiver running through her as his breath teased her tendrils at her temple and the shell of her ear, at the same time causing goosebumps to trail down her neck. His body felt like a warm furnace beneath her, his earthen scent enveloping her. She knew she had to move, but she couldn't.

It was Naruto who moved; smooth, hard muscles rippling under her palms that had instinctively grabbed his chest. Finally shaking herself from her frozen stupor, she pushed against the warm chest for leverage, freeing herself from his arms in the process and scrambled up, getting to a sitting position.

Feeling breathless and tongue tied, she lowered her eyes to meet his.

And something shifted and leaped in the air between them. Still lying there on his back, his gaze locked with hers, his eyes seeming to reach right inside her, within her heart and very soul, making it impossible for her to look away.

The collar of her kimono had come slightly off, exposing a glimpse of one pearly white shoulder, her chest rising and falling in rapid, short breaths, her hair flowing at her back with the light breeze ruffling them. Darkened blue eyes roamed hungrily over the wonderful picture she offered, a purely male pleasure lighting them.

Almost mesmerised, Sakura did a survey of her own. His hair was in a jumbled spiky mess over his face, some strands falling over his eyes and she had the sudden urge to smooth them off. Unconsciously, her hand reached out towards his face and his eyes immediately widened in anticipation.

The loud cry of an owl from high above jolted Sakura and she stilled her hand, appalled. A soundless gasp escaped her. What was she doing, her mind screamed at her, and at the same time, she realized that she was squarely _straddling_ him. At least she was sitting on his abdomen, not any _lower_, was her burning thought.

She immediately made to move, but his hands shot out to grip her hips, pinning her firmly to him. Green eyes widened at him.

"Sakura… how long will we evade the issue?" he asked quietly, finally breaking the heavy, electric silence.

Her gaze flickered away from him uncertainly. "What are you talking about," she said. Her voice was pitched a little higher than normal and combined with her growing struggle against the emotions which were threatening to overwhelm her, Sakura felt herself trembling.

Naruto sighed. Then in a smooth motion, sat up, his chest aligning with hers, and while breath hitching audibly, Sakura snapped wide eyes back to him, his warm and strong arms encircled her waist to bring her flush against him.

"I'm talking about this," he whispered.

And moved his face forward to press his lips against hers.

Sakura's felt her heart missing a couple of beats. Everything came to a screeching stop in her mind.

Then as he softly kissed her, her heartbeat set off to a mad staccato rhythm, her lips softening beneath his gentle touch, her eyes fluttering shut on their own accord.

When he raised his head after some long minutes, Sakura could only stare at him, shaken to the core. It had been quite a chaste kiss, but Sakura was left reeling. She was dizzy and disoriented, her stomach churning, and her heart was pumping with something close to terror at the irrevocable change of things.

This was Naruto. Naruto, her best friend and long time team mate, and between them, between what they shared and all what they have been through, something like this was not to be taken lightly, ever.

Naruto, into whom, she realized, she badly wanted to throw herself back again to be kissed. Naruto, with whom this was so right. So hers. So theirs.

So destined, since always.

"Naruto," she whispered shakily.

His eyes were dark as he gazed into her wide, brilliant emerald orbs. She had not jumped back in horror or disgust. She had not punched him to the sky. And her eyes…her eyes mirrored all what he was feeling right then.

Love. Faith. Trust. Joy. Wonder. Passion.

His hand came up to cradle a heated cheek and he brushed his lips against her forehead, and she leaned into him, hungry for his touch.

"Do you know for how long I've waited to do this?" he murmured against his skin, his voice husky.

"I thought…I thought you were over this; I thought you gave up on…me," she breathed.

He scoffed loudly. First Sai, now her. "I _never_ give up, Sakura-chan. That's my nindo. You _know_ that!"

They had a long talk overdue, they had lots of things to sort out, but it could all wait; for now, he wanted to _feel_, not to talk, and he took her lips in another kiss.

She melted into him and kissed him back, a wonderful warmth flooding through her while the tremor of excitement inside her grew stronger and stronger until it overwhelmed her coherent thoughts. His hair felt silky soft as her fingers became tangled in it, his arms warm and strong as they tightened around her frame, molding their bodies together, his jaw strong and lips firm and hungry as he deepened the kiss.

He had been wrong, came the flitting thought as Naruto felt himself drowning in her softness, in her intoxicating taste and scent as they kissed hungrily, again and again, sometimes slowing to an aching tenderness then mounting to a frenzied heat, as if to make up for all the waiting. He didn't die; he felt more alive than he had ever has before.

The wild drumming of his heart and the heady _live_ rush of blood in his veins were the proof of it.

The moon had finally emerged from behind the clouds when they broke apart a long, long while later, both breathing hard. Still straddling him and closely enlaced, they silently watched the astral body, shining in its luminescent glory. It was bright enough for Naruto to see the tiniest details of the girl's features in his arms.

"It's true, the moon is particularly beautiful tonight," he said, "but I reiterate what I said earlier. You're even more beautiful."

His bright, tender grin made her heart flutter madly. She blushed deeply, and mumbling incomprehensively, buried her face in his neck. "Baka," she whispered.

Another thing in which he had been wrong, Naruto thought as he set out to playfully tease her, there, sitting under the moonlight and it's shadows. Love _could_ be complicated…but sometimes, it could be so simple too.

End.


End file.
